History of Utah, 1540-1886 - Brigham Young University

FEEMONT'S EXPEDITIONS.
difficulty, after separation from each other and several
days' wanderings.
Leaving three men in camp, with four others, including
Kit Carson who was present, Fremont on the
8th embarked in a rubber boat and dropped down to
the mouth of the stream, which the party found shallow
and unnavigable. Next morning they were out
on the lake, fearful every moment lest their air-blown
boat should collapse and let them into the saline but
beautiful transparent liquid. At noon they reached one
of the low near islands and landed. They found there,
washed up by the waves, a dark brown bank, ten
or twenty feet in breadth, composed of the skins of
worms, about the size of oats, while the rocky cliffs
were whitened by incrustations of salt. Ascending
to the highest point attainable they took a surrounding
view, and called the place Disappointment Island, 13
because they had failed to find the fertile lands and
game hoped for. Then they descended to the edge
of the water, constructed lodges of drift-wood, built
fires, and spent the night there, returning next day
in a rough sea to their mainland camp. Thence they
proceeded north to Bear River, and Fort Hall, and
on to Oregon. 17 On his return by way of Klamath
and Pyramid lakes, Fremont crossed the Sierra to
Sutter Fort, proceeded up the San Joaquin into
Southern California, and taking the old Spanish trail
to the Rio Virgen followed the Wahsatch Mountains
to Utah Lake.
There was a party under Fremont in Utah also in
1845. Leaving Bent Fort in August they ascended
the Arkansas, passed on to Green River, followed
its left bank to the Duchesne branch, and thence
crossed to the head-waters of the Timpanogos, down
which stream they went to Utah Lake. Thence
16 Now Castle Island, or as some call it Fremont Island.
17 For an account of Fremont's Oregon adventures see Hist. Oregon; and
for his doings in California see Hist. Cat., this series. We also meet with
him again in our History of Nevada.
Hist. Utah, a
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